1968 United States presidential election

===Election===
The election on November 5, 1968, proved to be extremely close, and it was not until the following morning that the television news networks were able to declare Nixon the winner. The key states proved to be California, Ohio, and Illinois, all of which Nixon won by three percentage points or less. Had Humphrey carried all three of these states, he would have won the election. Had he carried only two of them or just California among them, George Wallace would have succeeded in his aim of preventing an electoral college majority for any candidate, and the decision would have been given to the House of Representatives, at the time controlled by the Democratic Party. Nixon won the popular vote with a plurality of 512,000 votes, or a victory margin of about one percentage point. In the electoral college Nixon's victory was larger, as he carried 32 states with 301 electoral votes, compared to Humphrey's 13 states and 191 electoral votes and Wallace's five states and 46 electoral votes.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1968|title=1968 Presidential General Election Results|last=Leip|first=David|website=David Leip's Atlas of Presidential Elections}}</ref>

Richard Nixon was able to win the Electoral College, dominating several regions in the [[Western United States]], [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]], [[Upland South]], and portions of the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]], while winning the popular vote by a relatively small 511,944 votes over Democratic nominee [[Hubert Humphrey]]. Democratic nominee Hubert Humphrey performed relatively well in the Northeast and Upper Midwest. Wallace finished last with five states in the [[Deep South]]; he is the most recent [[third party (United States)|third-party]] candidate to win any states.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.270towin.com/historical-presidential-elections/|title=Historical U.S. Presidential Elections 1789-2016|website=www.270towin.com|access-date=2021-12-20}}</ref> This is the first time that the Republican popular vote margin was under 5 points since [[1896 United States presidential election|1896]].

Out of all the states that Nixon had previously carried in 1960, Maine and Washington were the only two states that did not vote for Nixon again in 1968, although Nixon would carry them four years later during his re-election campaign in 1972. He also carried eight states that voted for John F. Kennedy in 1960: Illinois, New Jersey, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada and Delaware. This was the last time until 1988 that the state of Washington voted Democratic and until 1992 that Connecticut, Maine, and Michigan voted Democratic in the general election. Nixon was also the last Republican candidate to win a presidential election without carrying Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. This is the first time which the Republican candidate captured the White House without carrying Michigan, Minnesota, Maine and Pennsylvania. He would be the last Republican candidate to carry Minnesota (four years later, in 1972), as of 2020.<ref name=":0" /> This is also the first time since 1916 that Minnesota voted for the candidate who did not eventually win.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.270towin.com/1916_Election/?m=In+1916,+Woodrow+Wilson+won+the+election+while+losing+Minnesota|title=Presidential Election of 1916|website=www.270towin.com|access-date=2019-02-01}}</ref>

Remarkably, Nixon won the election despite winning only two of the six states ([[Arizona]] and [[South Carolina]]) won by Republican Barry Goldwater four years earlier. He remains the only presidential candidate to win in spite of defending such a low number of his own party's states. All of the remaining four States carried by Goldwater were carried by Wallace in 1968. They would be won by Nixon in 1972.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Four of the fives states won by Wallace had voted for Goldwater.<ref>{{cite book |last=Murphy |first=Paul |date=1974 |title=Political Parties In American History, Volume 3, 1890-present |publisher=[[G. P. Putnam's Sons]]}}</ref>

Of the 3,130 counties/districts/independent cities making returns, Nixon won in 1,859 (59.39%) while Humphrey carried 693 (22.14%). Wallace was victorious in 578 counties (18.47%), all of which (with one exception of [[Pemiscot County, Missouri]]) were located in the [[Southern United States|South]].<ref name=":1" />

Nixon said that Humphrey left a gracious message congratulating him, noting, "I know exactly how he felt. I know how it feels to [[1960 United States presidential election|lose a close one]]."<ref name="1968 Year In Review, UPI.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1968/1968-Presidential-Election/12303153093431-2/ |title=1968 Year In Review |publisher=UPI|access-date=June 17, 2010}}</ref>